Allura

FYI, I just got the email reminding about the $29 Market Menu. It's Tuesdays-Thursdays, two courses. Looks like 3 choices for each, as well as 3 dessert choices for $6 extra. The menu varies weekly and is posted here.

So I'm standing over a pot of ravioli waiting for them to start floating. And I suddenly wondered - WHY? Why do they float? These are frozen cheese-filled ravioli, but in general, there's several types of pasta that "they're done when they float." That's what Mom told me anyway....

Sauteed pork chops with a garlic cream sauce - used a bit of cream cheese & milk to keep it low carb. Also a bit of thyme in the sauce. Served over raw baby spinach. Well, wilted when the chop got done with it.

A few pictures I found while cleaning out my memory card: Skinless chicken thighs stewed in chicken broth & apple cider, with carrots and onions. I think there's thyme in there, too: I think the fish is bocurti/white ruffy - I suspect the packaging is lying to me and it's something else completely, but it's a nice firm white fish with a slightly sweet flavor. I've been using it quite a bit lately; I get it at TJs. Anyway, I think it was baked with some white wine, basil, and the (obvious) plum tomatoes. Garlic mashed potatoes on the side. Pork stirfry with green beans, carrots and red pepper, over brown rice. We've been going out a lot lately, or eating leftovers or frozen stuff. The last thing I cooked was some Thai-influenced spice-crusted tuna steaks that I served over baby spinach. The spice mix had (too much) salt, cumin, lemon zest, black pepper, ginger, and bit of cinnamon. Squirted some lime juice over it all after. Forgot to grab a picture. I need to start cooking again.

Ok, finally found the most recent thread (there's a good half dozen or more, and the google search doesn't order them by date, afaik)! We went to the Stage House for the first time for our anniversary dinner, after receiving lots of great suggestions for restaurants. I will confess to partially choosing it since it's so nearby. Well, now that we've tried it we'll keep going back! Heck, my husband, the meat & potatoes guy, leaned over to me at one point and said "we should come back". Sure!!! We had 6:30 reservations on Tuesday night, and there were only a few other tables there. I think two turned while we were there, and two more were sat, but the room was never more then 2/3 full. The dress is "business casual" on the website, but most people were somewhat dressed up, with at least half the men in sports coats and almost all the women in dresses. I liked the room; I have a fondness for historical places. I'll warn you right now: i know they have a great wine selection, but we're not drinkers, so no wonderful pairings. I had a single glass of a California Chardonnay (and left some of it because I could feel it interacting with my medication) and my husband had an amaretto sour. Other wise we drank water until dessert. But the food! They bring a roll basket around; we both had sour dough. Nice and warm, and a good crust. They had another type of roll but it sounded sweet, so I passed. We were served an amuse of salmon tartare with an orange sauce; I expected the sauce to be sweet, but it wasn't at all; very nice. My appetizer was a warm ricotta tart with wild mushrooms on top, and a small asparagus & some-green-I-can't-remember-the-name-of salad on the side. There was also a white sauce on the plate that I think may have had some horseradish in it. We both enjoyed it. DH ordered the salad with duck confit and cracklings. I sorta steered him to it, and didn't realize at the time that he didn't like duck! Trust me, this is a dish for duck lovers. Lots of duck in a mixed green salad, lightly dressed. I had a few bites, but I think it could have been a meal by itself. Our waiter noticed that my husband hadn't really eaten the salad, and asked if he could replace it. We told him he was fine, and had helped me with mine...Then another man came over, who seemed a manager of some variety (regular dress shirt & tie, not the white & black the staff was wearing), and again asked us. Poor Jon (DH) was a bit intimidated, I think. He knew the salad was very good, it just wasn't to his personal taste. Over our protests, they took it of the bill! For his main, my husband ordered a pork chop, which was a splendid example of it's kind. Thick, juicy, bone-in. Had more of the mushrooms that topped my tart on the side, as well as cabbage. I think there was something under the chop, but I'm not sure what, and I only tried a small bite. He was too busy enjoying it. I think the staff was much happier when they cleared this plate of his. I ordered sea scallops, three large, wonderfully sweet scallops set on top of pancetta risotto and arugula. I was in heaven. A perfect match. DH stole more then a few bites of the risotto, too. For dessert, I had a molten chocolate cake; hey, I love chocolate! Actually, it was surprisingly not-sweet, in a good way. The center was not regular chocolate, as I expected. I'm not actually sure what it was; white & creamy & sweet. Served with a scoop each of vanilla & passion fruit ice cream. The passion fruit was incredible; tasted like pure fruit. Jon had a vanilla creme brulee. In addition, I had coffee - complete with brown sugar cubes, which I hadn't seen before, only white (which, frankly, not enough places serve; I love sugar cubes). Jon had a tea called "buccaneer" which had a wonderful aroma - vanilla, coconut, and some other things. Actually, the tea was the one service slip of the night - our waiter started to pour coffee for him by mistake. Oh, and I had indulged myself in noting it was our 5th anniversary when we made our reservations (open table), so we were also served a small dish with a scoop each of vanilla & chocolate ice cream and happy anniversary written on the sides. Service was great. They use a fairly formal style, with domes for hot food, and not serving if someone's not at the table (noticed the food come out for the table next to us and the staff stopping short and detouring to a service station to wait till the lady got back to the table). But, it wasn't stiff; everyone was having a good time, especially the table next to us who had brought their own wine and were on bottle 3 or 4 by the time we left...plus I think they had been in the bar first. I was eavesdropping shamelessly, and got the impression that the man who brought the wine was in the business in some way. Anyway, it was really sweet that on the way out the hostess wished us Happy Anniversary. I mean, yeah, sure she had it on her computer, but she hadn't seen us since she sat us. They were advertising the return of their $29 prix fix "market" menu staring on June 29, I think. $29 for two courses, dessert for $6 additional, I think. Plus, of course, Tuesday is their BYOB night. As I mentioned in the anniversary thread, this was one of our first, say, "gourmet" meals. Can I do it again?

Well, Rat's turned out to be booked on Tuesday. I guess I waited too long. I'll avoid the obvious pun here.....(Rat's! ) Anyway, we decided on the Stage House. I know it's a bit more casual then some of the other options, but it's a place I've wanted to try anyway. Also, DH isn't sure he wants to drive that far after all, esp since we're planning to go to the Bronx Zoo the day before (yes, we're silly ), so this will be a more quiet day. OTOH, I have a lovely list of ideas for my birthday, which is coming up at the end of July...

Has anyone been recently? It's on the (increasing! ack!) list of restaurants we're thinking about for our anniversary. Thanks! :)

They're popular for use as dice bags among a lot of gamers. DH & I have been trying to figure out who we can give the bottle to, just so we can mooch the bag :)

I don't shop at Walmart because I find it dingy, messy, and crowded and the staff isn't very helpful. It's just not a pleasant experience. I do look on some of their business practices with suspicion, but I also try to see things from both sides. However, one of my favorite stores to shop in is another non-union shop - Trader Joe's. The staff is pleasant & helpful, going out of their way to get things or help; I've overheard offers to help load stuff in the car, for instance. They automatically bag your groceries, something that is no longer a guarantee anywhere, etc. The stores are small, but clean & bright. And yet, the prices are decent to very good, depending on the item. They're doing something right, although I wish I could get loose produce there and a bit more varity in meat cuts. Even Target, which is often compared to Walmart as an "evil corporation" is a more pleasant shopping experieince. Again, clean stores, helpful staff. I don't know how to solve the "Walmart problem" except by putting your money where your mouth is, so to speak, and shopping elsewhere.

Can I just say that, esp having worked in the industry, I find the Ryland Inn's "pharmaceutical dinner menu" highly amusing? Although my friend just IMd me to say they also took down the directions for arriving by private helicopter.....

So my husband narrowed it down to three restaurants: American Fare Rat's Stagehouse I'm leaning towards Rat's since I have friends who've been there & loved it, and I'd like to see the garden anyway. But I'll always take advice. :)

I keep forgetting about the Hilton Short Hills. I also had a friend suggest the Frog & the Peach, which looks like it has an interesting menu. However, I haven't seen a lot of discussion about it here. Ack! More choices! What a terrible dilemma. I have GOT to get my husband to look at menus with me and make comments.

Ok, obviously, I like my food - I'm here, right? However, DH is more of a meat & potatoes type, and we don't have a large budget, so we rarely go out to anything beyond a diner or a chain restaurant. But, our 5th anniversary is coming up soon, and I'm determined to go out Someplace Nice. I've been going through posts and have a few possibilities, but was hoping you nice folks could help me narrow it down a bit further. We don't drink, although I MIGHT have a single glass of wine - meds make this unlikely, though. DH drinks silly sweet mixed drinks. So, obviously, wine list isn't really a criteria. I'm fully aware of the prices of the places I'm looking at, so that's mostly not an issue. I'd rather stay in NJ, then go into NYC. I live in Scotch Plains, so closer is better, but I'm not really adverse to traveling a bit. We'll either be going a Sunday or a Tuesday. Possibilities: American Grill Fascino Nicholas Rat's Stage House Any gems I've missed? I suspect there's a bit of a range in between places on this list. I sorta like the idea of a tasting menu, but I'd rather have choices on a multi course menu. I've also been thinking about one of the fancier brunches, but we're not really morning people, so I don't know if that's practical (DH works night shift). Thanks for any advice!

I stopped in at the Manalapan location for lunch with my mother & sister today. Had a 10 minute wait at 2pm, so I guess they're doing well. My mother had a cup of cream of mushroom soup, and I had a cup of NE clam chowder to start. It's raining and COLD here today for some reason, so we both wanted the soup. Didn't try mom's, but the clam chowder was more like a potato soup with corn & clams in it. Not bad, but not quite what I expected. Lots of big clam pieces, though. I had a chicken pesto panini sandwich, which I'm eating the second half of now, actually. Grilled chicken breast, grilled thin-sliced zucchini, roasted red peppers, pesto, mozzeralla, decent roll. Served with tortilla chips and salsa. It was a very nice combination; usually I'm picky about my sandwiches, and it all worked well together. Sis had "the full monty" - a basic monte cristo, although not as sweet as most of them. Hers was served with a rasperry sauce that she loved, and lots of cut & diced fruit all over the plate including pineapple, grapes, strawberries, melon & mango. My mother had a veggie quesedilla (Mom was sick, so I didn't get to try anything of hers) that she mentioned included spinach & mushrooms. I think she had more chips on her plate. We all took a bit home. Oh, and I had coffee to (house, but still good) and we all had water. I actually really like that the pitcher is on the table - interstingly it had a slice of orange in it, not lemon. Service was good, although she didn't ask if we wanted dessert. She mentioned at the end that their computers (POS?) were down at one point, but it didn't affect us in any way. Oh, and we wanted dessert, but they didn't have anything particularly interesting (lemon pound cake, brownie, or cookies), so we went over to Wegman's and got some individual things to eat upstairs. Edited to add an ingredient to my sandwich. Looked down & realized I forgot the mutz!

Can anyone tell me more about the brunch at the Molly Pitcher Inn, Meritage, and/or Old Mill Inn? We went to Meritage once a few years ago, but I don't remember much, except that it was pretty good. My sister got sick this morning, so we had to cancel our Mother's Day brunch at Joe & Maggie's in Long Branch. I'm looking for something else in the Monmouth/Ocean County area that we could do to replace it in the next week or two. My preference is a Sunday buffet brunch, preferably less then $30/person. I love the idea of a place like Rat's or LaCroix in Philly, but they're probably way too much to spend unless it's just my mom & I.

Oh! Oops, I never replied. Let's see... Friday night we went to John Harvard's. It was fairly solid; I had meatloaf, mashed potatoes & broccoli. The food is good, the company was better - we met up with someone we had met online and we turned out to have a lot in common with her & her husband. We were there almost 3 hours talking. :) Saturday & Sunday breakfast was, indeed, the dreaded McDonald's. I ended up with a bacon, egg & cheese croissant which is better then the plastic monstrosity that the egg mcmuffin has become. It put food in my stomach. *wry* Saturday night we went to Friendly's, mostly in honor of the friend who couldn't come who doesn't have Friendly's by her. I don't remember what I had for dinner, actually, although I did have a Reess's Pieces sundae for dessert (3 scoops, all Forbidden Chocolate). That sundae's pretty much the reason I go to Friendly's, although I recall thinking the food's a bit better then I thought. Sunday night we left a bit early and met up with some friends near our house, at the Outback in Springfield on Rt 22. "Outback special" (what cut is that, anyway?) and a baked potato. The problem is that after walking around all day and such, we're not feeling too adventerous.

I'm only 30, so my childhood is a bit more recent, but we did the "order one less" thing, too. As far as I can tell, we were comfortable, but certainly not rich. We almost never ate out, but we did somewhat frequently get take out Italian or Chinese. Italian would be a pizza & a large eggplant parm sub, and Chinese was two dishes and spareribs to be shared by the three of us (3 dishes once my sister came along). My big thing was that I adored fried rice, but my father thought it was a waste of money when "they give you rice for free," so I made my own version: a tiny bit of each dish that we had (including meat torn from the spareribs), and soy & duck sauce, all mixed together. Now that I'm a grown up, I get to order fried rice for myself! In fact, when I was in college, I would routinely order "10 ingredients" fried rice for dinner. :)

I definately peek. I also find myself with some food snobbery when I see the junk food. Then I look at my set with...mostly...pride. Not counting the hot pockets & such for DH's lunch (he LIKES them), or the ice cream. I did get asked once what I was going to do with all the mushrooms I had bought. I told her I was making a side dish for New Year's Eve with cream & wine and such - very rich and yummy. She looked confused. Also, I can usually stump the cashiers with simple stuff like turnips! Oh, and on the food stamp note. The only person I know that's on food stamps is my friend's sister. This lady is a single mom of 3 kids and works full time (retail manager). I don't know what her buying/cooking habits are like, but I know she needs the food stamps to stretch her budget. I do know that she can cook, and if her sister's cooking skills are any indication, she can probably cook well and cheaply. However, she still needs them for the the kids who drink a LOT of milk and other staples. I don't think I really begrudge her the assistance.

I have a friend that's Thai, and I've been to her parent's house several times. Her mother ALWAYS makes some Thai dishes (and some Americans for her....uneducated...friends <g>). Every time I dutifully tried a bit of everything, mostly to be polite. It was ok, but not my favorite. Then two years ago, on the day before her wedding they had a traditional Buddhist blessing ceremony. There was a TON of food (part of the ceremony involves providing a meal to the monks). Nothing Americanized this time. Again, I started trying a bit of everything...and LOVED it. This was the first time I truly enjoyed all of the Thai dishes, heat and all. :) I'm not sure what changed, but I still continue to enjoy it all.

My mother has my grandmother's "pasta pot", one of those big yellow stockpots. She also has her "lasagna pan", a white enameled cast-iron (I think - it's heavy enough) rectangular roasting pan. I didn't even THINK about asking for her rolling pin till I saw the photo above. Knowing my aunt, it's gone to Goodwill (or trash!) by now (My grandfather just passed away last month, so my mom & aunt have been going through their house). I don't have it yet, but my mom turned up an old Mixmaster that belonged to my grandmother. I'll be getting it next time I see her, but I don't know the era or if it still works well.

Let me add my thanks, as well. :)

Mirabelle would be lovely, but not in our budget! :) Ah well, if I find anything new, I guess I'll just have to report back.

We tried the Tagalong flavor ice cream, and I really liked it. Then again, I'm a sucker for chocolate peanut butter ice creams, particularly Edy's regular chocolate withe peanut butter swirl. The Tagalong's a vanilla base, and I thought I wouldn't like it, but it was pretty good. The Samoa/Carmel DeLite thing is due to different bakers. ABC calls them Carmel DeLite, Little Brownie Bakers calls them Samoa. Apparently it's the choice of the council (regional area - county sized or so) which baker to use.

My first dinner post. This is really the first time I've had a steak come out just the way I like it. It's a london broil, marinated in teriyaki/ginger/garlic/red pepper flakes/rice vinegar/veg oil. I was going to eat it plain, but later decided to put some Ken's creamy Parmesan dressing on, just a trickle. We actually eat our "dinner" at lunch time, since my husband works night shift. It makes me a bit time crunched - he actually took his salad with him to eat on his first break. It also means we don't get too elaborate. Dessert will probably be leftovers from Easter - either mini cannoli or 7layer cake.

I was wondering if anyone could help me out. We're making our annual trip to the SUNY Stonybrook campus for the ICON sci-fi convention Apr 8-10. In the past we've eaten breakfast at either a diner or in our hotel restaurant (Islandia Mariott). Does anyone know of something good but cheap before my friend takes us to McDonald's....? Also, options for dinner would be good, too. Friday we traditionally go to John Harvard's, but Saturday tends to be more up in the air. We likely won't settle our event schedule until that weekend, and can end up eating dinner really late. Anything open late other then Friendly's? Again, good but cheap is the preference. Need to save our money for the dealer's floor! Thanks! PS - if anyone else is going or wants more info, PM me!